New hybrid organic-inorganic sol-gel positive resist

The direct nanopatterning of a novel hybrid organic-inorganic sol-gel film based on bridged polysilsesquioxanes (BPS) using X-ray synchrotron radiation is reported. The main advantages of a direct fabrication technique with respect to conventional photolithography are represented by the possibility to bypass some typical post-exposure lithographic steps and to avoid the use of a sacrificial layer. The distinctive features rendering hybrid BPS-based material innovative for photolithographic applications are: the patternability as resist, the positive tone behaviour exhibited under X-ray irradiation, the porous structure demonstrated at low temperature, and the possibility to widely tailor material electro-optical and structural properties to experimental needs. A systematic investigation of the interactions between sol-gel BPS films based on the bis(triethoxysilyl)benzene precursor and soft X-rays is conducted. Under X-ray exposure, BPS-based films suffer structural changes attributed to the organic bridge breaking, and become soluble in suitable acidic aqueous solutions, producing final lithographies of sub-micron resolution, high contrast and good edge definition. (C) 2009 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.